Blackstone and Wellspring Complete Acquisition of Performance Food Group
RICHMOND, Va. (May 27, 2008) – Performance Food Group Company announced today that the previously announced acquisition of the Company by affiliates of The Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX) and Wellspring Capital Management has been completed. The transaction is valued at approximately $1.4 billion. Performance Food Group is being merged with a wholly owned subsidiary of VISTAR Corporation, a leading specialty foodservice distributor controlled by affiliates of Blackstone and Wellspring. The newly combined company, known as Performance Food Group, is expected to have revenues approaching $10 billion and more than 10,000 associates. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Performance Food Group shareholders will receive $34.50 in cash for each outstanding share of PFG common stock held as of 4:00 P.M (EDT) on May 23, 2008. As a result of the merger, Performance Food Group Company’s common stock was delisted and ceased trading on the NASDAQ Global Select Market as of such time.
George Holm, president and chief executive officer of VISTAR, will assume the role of chief executive officer for Performance Food Group. Mr. Holm has been an executive in the foodservice distribution industry for 28 years, and prior to joining VISTAR held senior leadership roles with Alliant Foodservice Inc., U.S. Foodservice, Inc., and SYSCO Corporation.
Mr. Holm noted, “With our newly combined business strengths, dedicated associates, loyal customers, and top-quality suppliers, I am really excited about the opportunities Performance Food Group has for continued growth and success within the industry.”
“We are very pleased to be able to combine two leading companies in the foodservice distribution industry,” said Prakash Melwani, a senior managing director at Blackstone. “The companies are highly complementary in terms of distribution networks, customer focus and product offerings and are ideally positioned for continued strong growth going forward. Blackstone’s significant investment in PFG reflects our high degree of confidence in management and the strategic merits of this combination.”
William F. Dawson, Jr., a partner at Wellspring, added, “We are excited to be increasing our commitment to the foodservice distribution industry through this transaction. The combined company represents a dynamic, growing foodservice platform with substantial breadth and diversity across a broad range of customers, products and channels. We have a best-in-class management team which is ready to capitalize on the many opportunities created by this merger.”
About Performance Food Group and VISTAR Corporation
Performance Food Group, headquartered in Richmond, VA, is the nation’s third largest foodservice distributor. The company markets and distributes more than 68,000 national and private label food and food-related products to over 41,000 restaurants, hotels, cafeterias, schools, healthcare facilities and other institutions in all 50 states and in 40 countries. Further information is available at www.pfgc.com.
VISTAR Corporation, based in Centennial, CO is a leading food-away-from-home distributor. The company operates VISTAR Specialty Markets, the nation’s leading specialty food distributor and the only national distributor to the vending, office coffee services, theatre, and fund-raising markets. The company also operates Roma Foodservice, a leading distributor of Italian foods and products to independent pizzerias. VISTAR Corporation serves more than 33,000 customers in 50 states through 36 distribution centers. Further information is available at www.vistarvsa.com.
About The Blackstone Group
Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment and advisory firms. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, the companies we advise and the broader global economy. We do this through the commitment of our extraordinary people and flexible capital. Our alternative asset management businesses include the management of corporate private equity funds, real estate funds, hedge funds, funds of funds, debt funds, collateralized loan obligation vehicles (CLOs) and closed-end mutual funds. The Blackstone Group also provides various financial advisory services, including mergers and acquisitions advisory, restructuring and reorganization advisory and fund placement service. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com.
About Wellspring Capital Management
Wellspring Capital Management LLC is a New York-based private equity firm that manages more than $2.0 billion in equity capital. The firm is focused on acquiring companies where it can realize substantial value by contributing management expertise, innovative operating and financing strategies and capital. Further information is available at www.wellspringcapital.com.
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